Chapter 103 New Year's Eve
In the blink of an eye, it was New Year's Eve, and the emperor specially allowed Qi Wuhan to bring Jiang Lan to the palace to celebrate the New Year.
Before, he always came alone, and would take his leave from the emperor before the palace banquet was over. Then he would go to the city wall alone to watch the bright stars and the moon, and the lights of thousands of homes, until the stars and the moon gradually disappeared and the sky gradually brightened, which was considered as staying up all night to welcome the New Year.
This time, he was no longer alone.
After the carriage drove onto the street, Jiang Lan pulled aside the curtain and looked outside. She had thought that the outside would be full of people and very lively, but unexpectedly it seemed a little empty.
All the shops are closed, and every household is also closed to prepare for ancestor worship and the New Year's Eve dinner, so it is very lively inside the house, but not outside.
"The Lantern Festival will be lively. I'll take you to see the lanterns then~" Qi Wuhan said with a smile.
Jiang Lan nodded happily and said "hmm", her eyes sparkling with pure light, like the shining stars, pure and beautiful.
Qi Wuhan likes to see her smiling like this. No matter what she wants to do, he is her backer.
"We don't have to sit separately at the banquet later, right?" It was Jiang Lan's first time to attend a banquet in the palace, and she didn't know if the rules of the banquet were the same as those outside the palace, where the men's and women's seats had to be separated, but she wanted to sit with him.
"No need." Qi Wuhan said lovingly.
"So what do you think of my outfit? It won't embarrass you, will it?" Jiang Lan raised her hand and touched the jewelry on her head. She then looked down at the dress she was wearing and stroked the skirt above her knees for fear of wrinkles. She looked a little nervous. Qi Wuhan reached out and held her hand, giving her some reassurance.
"No matter what you wear or what you put on, it won't embarrass me. I married such a beautiful woman, gentle and virtuous, I can't find such a beautiful woman even with a lantern~"
…
The palace was brightly lit and decorated everywhere. Everyone had a happy look on their face and it was very lively.
In addition to Qi Wuhan and Jiang Lan who received the emperor's grace, the general's mansion and the Changxing Marquis' mansion also received grace. Cui Hai and Changxing Marquis both brought their families into the palace.
Princess Pingyang and the wife of Marquis Changxing were both dressed very grandly, equally well dressed. The jewels and jade on their heads sparkled in the rays of the setting sun, and the light could be seen from a long distance away.
Cui Jingshu and Gu Xuan'er were dressed equally well, wearing the best jewelry and clothes. A pair of earrings alone was enough to cover the annual salary of an ordinary official. Standing next to them, one could smell the scent of gold.
When we met again after a few months, Cui Jingshu still looked arrogant.
Jiang Lan thought to herself that it seemed she hadn't reflected on her actions at all. His Majesty should teach her a lesson, otherwise Prince Fu would suffer after she married him.
Cui Yan also had a cold face, as if the two owed him money.
Jiang Lan thought that he was probably blaming her and Qi Wuhan for the incident when Ji Quan took him to the Imperial City Division. This hostility seemed to be stronger than before.
Before, she had no idea what grudge he had with Qi Wuhan. He looked bitter and resentful the moment they met. But the last time she saw Princess Changle in the palace, she knew the reason. He was probably afraid that Qi Wuhan would snatch the princess from him.
Now that Qi Wuhan is already in a relationship, he shouldn't have this concern anymore...
Cui Hai and Marquis Changxing exchanged a few pleasantries with Qi Wuhan, but Princess Pingyang ignored Jiang Lan, so Jiang Lan didn't get close to her to annoy her.
On the contrary, the wife of Marquis Changxing was much more cordial to her this time, and Madam Gu was also friendly to her. When Gu Jincheng saw Madam Gu smiling at Jiang Lan, he looked strange, as if he had seen something strange. He stared at Jiang Lan again, and when Qi Wuhan looked at him, he went to look at the palace maid passing by not far away.
When Princess Pingyang saw that the wife of Marquis Changxing was trying to win over Jiang Lan, she narrowed her eyes unhappily and showed disdain on her face.
At this time, a palace maid came over and saluted everyone. When they saw this maid, Madam Gu and Gu Jincheng's faces changed slightly. They must have known each other. After the maid finished her salute, she gestured to Jiang Lan and Cui Jingshu to invite them in. "Madam, Second Miss, the Crown Princess invites you."
Jiang Lan was a little surprised and subconsciously looked towards Madam Gu. When she didn't see Madam Gu's expression, she glanced at Gu Jincheng next to her to see how he reacted. If he showed any excitement, she would despise him in her heart, thinking he was indecisive and hurting others and herself.
He didn't have any special reaction, as if he had let it go.
Jiang Lan was a little curious about what he was thinking. It was not because she was gossiping, but because Madam Gu was one of the few people who expressed kindness to her, and the two of them got along well. If possible, she wanted to help Madam Gu untie her knot and stop suffering.
As the maid led the two of them over, Cui Jingshu whispered to Jiang Lan, "You can't avoid the disaster on the first day, you will suffer sooner or later." As soon as she finished speaking, Cui Jingshu fell to the ground with a cry of "Aiya!" The maid hurried over to help her up and patted her clothes.
"How dare you trip me!"
"Which eye of yours saw me trip you?"
Seeing that Jiang Lan refused to admit it, Cui Jingshu was so angry that she wanted to rush over to hit her but was stopped by a palace maid.
"Today is New Year's Eve, and the emperor is rarely happy. If you are not afraid of being punished, you can just throw a tantrum here and make a scene." Jiang Lan stepped back a few steps to give her space to throw a tantrum.
Cui Jingshu stomped her feet in anger, but she couldn't do anything about Jiang Lan, so she turned her anger on the palace maid. Jiang Lan pulled the palace maid to her side.
"The Crown Princess is still waiting. If you don't want to go, please go back first."
Jiang Lan asked the palace maid to continue leading the way. Cui Jingshu walked over quickly, squeezed her out of the way, and let her walk behind.
After meeting the Crown Princess, Jiang Lan's first impression was that she was gentle, dignified, and had the dignity of a crown princess.
Cui Jingshu first saluted the Crown Princess, showing a very familiar manner, and then glanced proudly in Jiang Lan's direction, her eyes seemed to say "The Crown Princess and I are family, and you, an outsider, will never be able to compare to us."
"Greetings, Crown Princess." When Jiang Lan was paying her respects, Cui Jingshu deliberately spoke to the Crown Princess, wanting to leave her out in the cold. The Crown Princess was not one to show favoritism, so she raised her hand to let Jiang Lan stand up and then had someone offer seats to the two of them.
After Jiang Lan was invited over, Qi Wuhan glanced over there from time to time. At this time, Prince Rui came over and said, "The emperor has been summoning you every now and then recently. Is there something important?" Qi Wuhan said nonchalantly, "The emperor has been missing the fourth prince very much lately and often asks me to go to the palace to see the fourth prince. If the fourth prince is free, you might as well go and visit him. After all, the fourth prince and your highness are brothers from the same mother."
Having said this, he glanced in the direction of Prince An. Prince Rui's face turned extremely sinister, as if his reverse scale had been touched. He was very averse to others mentioning his younger brother Prince Ning.
"Don't compare me with that blind man." King Rui said coldly and turned away.
Qi Wuhan curled his lips and smiled, jokingly saying, "You really don't recognize your relatives."
…
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